Dunkirk: Made for IMAX

I raised my expectations for Dunkirk so ridiculously high that I expected myself to cry at the end of the film. I was ecstatic for this latest Christopher Nolan offering as I’m still being blown away by Interstellar whenever I watch it given that I’m not shy into saying that that is my favorite movie of all time. I didn’t cry at Dunkirk, nor felt blown away, it was just okay. 

What I loved about Dunkirk is its scattered storyline. There were 3 parts of the movie being shown simultaneously but is happening on different perspective and timeline. The plot is full of fearful imagery, anxiety, uncertainty and hopelessness but manages to execute it in a calm manner. Yes, the movie felt calm to me, soothing even, if it wasn’t for the realistically engineered sound design and effects that manages to startle me every time. 

It’s pure technical perfection. The cinematography is gorgeous and the music by Hans Zimmer was haunting yet subtle as if it weren’t there. This movie is best seen in IMAX. After all, this is where it’s built for, and it’s common knowledge that Nolan prefers IMAX more than anything. 

To say that this is the best war hero movie of all time is a little bit of a reach for me, since I feel like “Fury” is the best war movie of all time, even “Hacksaw Ridge” has more emotional resonance than Dunkirk. 

When the movie announced that Harry Styles will be in it, I said we should trust Nolan and I have. He wasn’t horrible, he wasn’t great either, but he was used to embody the younger generation and to attract audience for the movie itself. Commendable acting from Mark Rylance which I’m pretty sure will get an Oscar nomination next year and will probably win. 

I love Christopher Nolan, I do, but I was a little bit disappointed in Dunkirk. It didn’t reach me emotionally, the storyline is simple, the running time is ridiculously short, but compared to all the movies out right now, it’s the best. Ranking from Nolan’s film though, it’s at the bottom. 

Grade: 8/10 stars

Interstellar Movie Review

Interstellar Movie Review

I would like to start in saying that this movie is the movie I am most excited for for this year. We have all been waiting for Christopher Nolan’s film after the successful Dark Knight Trilogy and the critically acclaimed ‘inception.’

You know what to expect in watching a movie by Nolan. You will be left with so many questions that will leave you eager for the answers. Basically you will be left hanging, but you know you have been provided enough to answer your own questions. This is a mark of masterful filmmaking that is so rare these days. God bless Nolan for this.

Interstellar stars Matthew McConaughey, Ann Hathaway, Jessica Chastain and well, the one that is always present in Nolan’s films, Michael Caine. In the distant future our Earth will be at the brink of dying and Cooper, played by McConaughey is tasked to save us all. Saving our world requires leaving our galaxy into another through a wormhole. All of this is to find another planet that can inhabit humans thus preventing extinction. There is a lot of science that comes along with this mission, but you get  the picture. Whether he was able to save humankind is up for you to find out by watching this movie yourself.

The main drama is how Cooper needs to leave her only daughter Murphy, and this  is basically what drove Cooper as a character to finish his mission in order to come back to his daughter. Hathaway, as Caine’s daughter, is focused on fulfilling the mission to find the planet that will salvage our dying earth. Solid acting from the both of them, but I got to admit, all their interaction, on the spaceship anyway, reminded me of Sandra Bullock and George Clooney in Alfonso Cuaron’s Gravity.

It is very refreshing to see Jessica Chastain, playing a character I’d rather not say as it will spoil the movie’s  plot, but it is worth noting the short appearance of Matt Damon. But yes, he is kinda ass on this one.

You are probably thinking that since this is an adventure through galaxies, that you will be blown away  by visual effects of the stars and what not. The way it was depicted is something like making it second nature. In fact, I felt it was an another  character deep in doubt and mystery. Visual effects means nothing if it is made for us just to see, it is more compelling if it will make you feel what you see. They did this very well.

I’m gonna have to admit that I have been disappointed in Hans Zimmer’s work lately (Amazing Spider Man 2 anyone?), but he always have this knack of creating a theme, mostly strong in strings, that is unique of that movie. You can tell the comfort in the music that is projected in this movie, of how comfortable Zimmer is working with Nolan after all these years.

As the drama evolves on Cooper’s family, it is the kind of drama that draws you to your own personal drama. At the end, I believe this will affect each one differently.

Interstellar is a masterpiece. I have learned over the years that in a movie, sometimes it doesn’t matter what the story is, it is how it is told. It is ambitious in every way, and in this galaxy or not, Interstellar shines.

Grade: 8.5/10